COVID-19 PANDEMIC FAQ

IMMIGRATION PROCESSING CHANGES

Last updated: April 28, 2020 

Q. I have a hearing in immigration court. Do I have to attend?
All hearings for non-detained cases are cancelled until May 15th. People with hearings that have been cancelled should receive a new notice in the mail. You should also call 1-800-898-7180 to check for new dates.

All immigration court hearings for detained cases are being held at this time.

Q. Do I need to attend a scheduled interview with immigration?
All interviews (including asylum interviews), biometrics appointments and naturalization/citizenship oath ceremonies have been canceled until June 4th. Immigration will send out new notices of appointment in the mail.

If you had an InfoPass appointment scheduled, it is cancelled. Once the USCIS is open to the public, you must reschedule your appointment through the USICS contact center.

Q. I have an upcoming deadline with USCIS, immigration court, Board of Immigration Appeals, etc… Do I have to meet my deadline?
Yes. USICS, immigration court and the BIA are all continuing to process applications and cases. As such, all deadlines must be met.

Q. Do I still need to report (check in) with ICE?
No. All check ins are cancelled. You should receive a new appointment either by telephone or mail.

As conditions keep changing, we encourage you to regularly continue to check the following websites:

U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services at https://www.uscis.gov
Executive Office for Immigration Review at https://www.justice.gov/eoir

Please note: Do not send us any nonpublic information about any legal matter for which you seek legal representation until we request that you do so. Empire Justice attorneys will inform you if and when your matter is considered for legal representation. Until that time, any information you provide WILL NOT be considered confidential, and NO attorney-client relationship is formed by communications received through this website. Any information available on the website is for general legal education purposes only, and is not legal advice.